Conventional remote recording and reporting systems and methods can be expensive and labor intensive operations. One such situation arises in the recording of information related to the repair and/or replacement of infrastructure at a remote location, and the subsequent generation of reports using this information.
Roof repair and/or replacement projects are one such example of such a labor-intensive operation. First, an inspector (who may be an employee of a roofing contractor, an independent consultant, an employee of a roofing product manufacturer providing roof warranties, among others) is dispatched to the remote building location to provide an assessment of the existing roof. During the assessment, the inspector determines the condition and deficiencies of the building's existing roof. During such an assessment, the inspector may use a pen and paper to take notes as the inspection is carried out. Vast amounts of information can be collected during the inspection and the types and amount of information may vary based on the type of roof being inspected. The types of information collected may be difficult and/or time intensive to record. Non-limiting examples of such information may include measurements of the building perimeter, the location and area of appliances on the surface of the roof, the location of depressions forming ponds and their associated shape, and the locations of roof defects, flashing, seams, drains, vents, and other infrastructure components and features. Furthermore, because the client (e.g., a building owner, building manager or customer) may choose not to participate in the inspection, the inspector may be required to take photographs to substantiate, or otherwise make clear, the types of defects found. Because the images taken with the camera and the inspection notes are unrelated, associating a particular picture with the corresponding infrastructure component, feature, or defect is difficult. Accordingly, when preparing inspection reports, it can be difficult to later match the images with the recorded information.
Once the inspection of the roof is complete, the resulting information can be reviewed to provide recommendations regarding maintenance, repair, and/or replacement of the existing roof to the building owner. Accordingly, a presentation of the assessment findings to the client may be prepared. For example, a report may be generated from the notes and measurements taken during the assessment. The photographs taken during the inspection may also be provided to the client to substantiate the recommendations.
Once the client reviews the assessment findings, a proposal may be requested for the performance of maintenance, repair, and/or replacement of the roof. Again, the proposal includes estimations based upon the information collected during the roof assessment. The hand recorded data from the assessment may be, for example, typed into a spreadsheet or other analysis software.
It should be apparent that a number of opportunities exist for introducing recording errors. For example, the manual recording of the inspection information provides ample opportunities to transpose digits, incorrectly place decimals, use incorrect units, or use non-uniform data, etc. Additionally, because the inspector performing the assessment is not guided through the required assessments, the inspector may accidentally perform incorrect assessments for the type of roof and/or may forget to record information crucial to providing accurate cost estimates. Accordingly, in addition to conventional inspections being a time consuming and labor intensive process, there are several opportunities for the introduction of recording errors. Thus, known manual recording and reporting processes do not address a number of needs.
Therefore, what is needed are alternative systems and methods for recording and reporting which are cost-effective, reduce the opportunities for recording errors, and address the need for faster, more accurate, and reliable on-site assessments.